DeepL book translation: what it handles, and when a book needs more
DeepL translates documents quickly and keeps their layout. A book is a different object: an EPUB, a cast of characters, sometimes ten volumes. Here is what DeepL does with one, according to its own pages, and what Libris Translate does differently.
DeepL and books
DeepL’s pages read on 9 October 2026; Libris Translate figures from version 0.29.0. Prices and limits change: follow the sources before deciding. A mistake? Write to us and we correct it.
What DeepL does with a book file
- Files it accepts: Word, PowerPoint, Excel, PDF (scanned ones too), HTML, plain text, XLIFF, SRT subtitles, InDesign IDML and a few more. EPUB is not in the list.
- Layout kept: the file comes back translated in the format you uploaded, with its formatting.
- Glossaries: your own terms, applied to the translation. One glossary of 5 entries per language pair on the Individual plan, 5 glossaries of 1,000 entries on Team, no limit on Business.
- Files per month: 3 file translations of up to 30 MB each on Individual, 20 on Team, 100 of up to 100 MB on Business.
- Your texts: on Pro plans, kept only as long as the translation needs, then deleted, and never used to train DeepL’s models.
Translating an EPUB with DeepL: the detour
An EPUB is a ZIP archive of HTML chapters, a table of contents, styles and images. DeepL does not open it, so the book takes a detour.
- Convert the EPUB into a format DeepL accepts (Word, HTML or PDF), or unzip it and take its chapter files one by one.
- Count the files: each upload is one of the month’s file translations, and each has to stay under your plan’s size limit. A book sent chapter by chapter uses the allowance fast.
- Rebuild the EPUB from the translated files: the table of contents, the metadata, the cover and the styles are yours to put back.
- Check the names: a glossary applies the entries it holds, within your plan’s limit per language pair. A character or a place it does not hold is translated sentence by sentence.
What Libris Translate does differently for a book
- EPUB in, EPUB out: EPUB 2 and 3 as they are, up to 256 MB per file by default, returned as an EPUB checked with EPUBCheck, with the source’s structure, styles and images. Import a book · Exports
- It reads the book first: a Book Bible of characters, places and terms, glossary terms you can lock, and a series memory every volume reads. Book Bible · Series consistency
- It shows where to proofread: a score from 0 to 100 per passage, weakest first, and a side-by-side editor. Quality · Editor
- You choose the model, hosted or on your own hardware, and pay its provider directly. DeepL is not one of them: Libris Translate works with language models, not with DeepL’s API. Which model, and what it costs
- It runs on your server: books, translations and history stay there; model calls send passages and narrative context, including glossary and memory excerpts, to the provider you configure. Install steps
Where DeepL is the better choice
- PDF and office files whose layout has to survive: Libris Translate extracts and translates PDF text, including scans, but does not retain PDF page design or images. It does not support fixed-layout EPUB or preserve office-document layout.
- Nothing to install: DeepL works in a browser; Libris Translate needs a Linux server with Docker.
- One price, one engine: no model to choose and no second bill; with Libris Translate you pay the licence and the model.
- Short texts and one-off documents: a blurb, a synopsis, a contract, a letter to a foreign publisher.
What each costs
DeepL Pro is a subscription per user: from €7.49 a month on Individual, billed yearly, to €49.99 on Business (prices shown for Germany, VAT included). For a book, the limit that counts is the number of file translations a month.
Libris Translate has two separate costs: the licence below, and the model, which you pay to its provider. On the book we measured, the model came to $107 for 100,000 words at list prices. The measure, model by model
- Personal: 50 € once, for non-commercial use, 200 000 words a month.
- Studio: 29 € a month or 290 € a year, 3 000 000 words a month, with the API and book sharing.
- Pro: quoted, 12 000 000 words a month.
- Trial: 30 days free, 100 000 words a month, no payment card. The free trial · All the plans
Which one for your book
- A PDF or office document whose page layout must be retained, a short text: DeepL.
- An EPUB, a novel with a cast of characters, a series: Libris Translate. The AI book translator, step by step
- Not sure: translate the same chapter with both. Libris Translate has a 30-day trial without a payment card. The free trial
- Whichever you choose, have a person read the translation before it is published. For translators · Libris and the other alternatives
Questions
- Can DeepL translate an EPUB file?
- Not directly: EPUB is not among the formats DeepL’s document translation lists. The book has to be converted to Word, HTML or PDF first, then rebuilt as an EPUB.
- Can DeepL translate a whole book?
- Yes, as files it accepts. Each one has to stay under your plan’s size limit (30 MB on Individual and Team, 100 MB on Business) and counts as one of the month’s file translations (3, 20 or 100).
- Can Libris Translate use DeepL as its engine?
- No. Libris Translate works with language models: any server that speaks the OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions protocol, plus the OpenAI and Anthropic APIs. Model providers
- Does DeepL keep my manuscript?
- On Pro plans, DeepL says it stores texts only as long as the service needs, deletes them afterwards and never uses them to train its models. With Libris Translate, the book stays on your server; model calls send passages and narrative context, including glossary and memory excerpts, to the provider you configure.
- Can I try both for free?
- DeepL’s free version includes one file translation a month, up to 5 MB. Libris Translate has a 30-day trial with 100 000 words a month, without a payment card; you still pay your model provider.